[HANASHIR:4649] Re: Rabbi Eric Yoffie's Sermon at the Biennial

[David & Susan Esterman <estermans...>]

I write having followed the discussion but missed the address by Rabbi
Yoffie in any of its forms. If anyone can point me to a e-version, I'd be
grateful.
In NZ at Temple Sinai our music, as anyone will tell you who has visited, is
a total patchwork of melodies which work for this small congregation. Over
time we have included some new composers, found old ones we never knew
existed, catered to the one Sephardi member by using Sephardi melodies from
time to time, and generally tried to encourage the congregation to take on
some new melodies so that the cantors don't always have to sing the same
tunes!

It has worked on the whole - there are some melodies that I would never try
to change (not many, though), and some sections of the service where we can
sing any of five or six melodies without upsetting the applecart totally.

Even the High Holidays nusaf is becoming familiar to the congregation,
although for a few years the cantors almost had to shout to get ahead and
lead the "proper" nusaf for the day!

I guess it's all about working together - to my way of thinking the music is
to enhance the service, and it provides a constant challenge for us.

Sue

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